Butternut Squash and Apple Soup with Pumpkin Seeds

This wholesome soup comes together quickly when you use precut squash, available fresh in many
supermarkets, and an immersion blender to blend the soup in the pot. If you have a lot of squash, make a
double batch of the soup and freeze the extra for up to 3 months.

 

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup with Pumpkin Seeds

 

2 Tbs. olive oil

1 yellow onion, thinly sliced

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1 garlic clove, pressed or minced

4 cups (32 fl. oz./1 l) water or low-sodium vegetable stock

About 3 lb. (1.5 kg) butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into cubes (about 9 cups)

2 tart apples such as Granny Smith, peeled, cored and chopped

1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

6 Tbs. (3 oz./90 g) plain low-fat yogurt

2 Tbs. toasted pumpkin seeds

 

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and salt and sauté until onion is softened and beginning to brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until softened and fragrant but not browned, about 1 minute longer.

 

Add the water, squash, apples and nutmeg. Raise the heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the squash is tender when pierced with a fork, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.

 

Using an immersion blender in the pot, puree the soup until smooth. Or, transfer soup, in batches if necessary, to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth; return to the pot and reheat if
necessary. Ladle the soup into bowls and top each serving with about 1 Tbs. yogurt and 1 tsp. pumpkin seeds. Serve hot. Serves 6.

 

 

Find more great recipes for nourishing fare you can prepare in a flash in our book Healthy in a Hurry, by Karen Ansel, MS, RD, and Charity Ferreira